Why I Chose Disney

There is so much depth to this story, so brace yourself for a bit of a ride.

Everyone, literally everyone knows that Disney parks exist. For those that have never been, I have a hard time explaining to them exactly what Disney parks means to me and why I love them so much. After all as an adult, I don’t think they could ever understand the feeling, unless of course they bring their children there. I find for a lot of adults that didn’t experience Disney as a child, seeing their own children loving the Disney Magic awakens that same feeling they would have had if they went as a child.

Let’s rewind to how my love of Disney started….

Pretty early on I was set up to be a Disney kid. The Little Mermaid opened in theaters 2 months after I was born. The following Christmas, which was the first Christmas that I could do anything other than chew on my feet, I received a ton of The Little Mermaid themed toys. My first stuffed animal that I played with was Georgette from Oliver and Company. Like I said it started pretty early for me! The first trip I ever made to Disney was when I was 3 years old. I don’t remember it at all but I have lots of pictures that let me know it did actually happen.

My sister and I were raised on Disney movies, and therefore we always played with Disney themed toys. I remember going to The Disney Store to get the stuffed animal sets and Barbie dolls for every new movie that would come out. We had Disney movie themed parties, wore Disney PJ’s to bed, and dressed up as a Disney characters for Halloween every year. Then 1997 happened, and my parents informed us we would be heading to Disney world.

I was so young the first time we went that in my mind, this would be my first family vacation, my first time leaving the state of Tennessee, and my first Disney trip. I remember so much of this trip that sometimes when I think about it I get teary eyed. There was so much about the trip that was nostalgic for me looking back. RIP: The Original Backlot Tour, SpectroMagic parade, Alien Encounter, talking trash can at Epcot, Honey I shrunk the kids’ playground, robot lady at Epcot, Toon Town, and Birthday Cake castle??

Yeah, that’s right, my first time seeing Cinderella castle was interesting because it had a 25th anniversary Birthday Cake overlay. This left me a really confused 9-year-old, 2 years later when we returned. We would continue to visit, until my Junior year of High School in 2006. This was the last time I stepped foot on Disney for a long time!! 8 Years, can you believe it? My sister and I longed for another trip but the economy was getting rough at the time, so my parents never made it happen again .

My Sophomore year of college, I saw a sign advertising the Disney College Program one day, so I went back to my dorm to research how to apply. Back then, you were required to watch an hour long video before applying. I watched the video, but my shy and introverted self decided to not go through with it. I never thought about the program again after that, but I did I spend time in college attempting to plan trips to Disney with my friends, but none ever converted to a serious plan. Years went by without any luck wrangling a group of people interested in a Disney trip.

After I graduated, I continued to take classes between getting excepted to graduate school. I managed to get approved to go on a study abroad trip to Japan summer of 2013. (You can probably guess how this is going to go 😏 ).

Now Japan was the place that I wanted to visit most in the entire world, so it was beyond a blessing for me to have the opportunity to travel there. I had a Japan bucket list ready with so many places to go. Then one day it dawned on me that I would be in reach of Tokyo Disneyland. I.Knew.I.had.to.go.there, and I was going to do everything in my power to make that happen because I might never get the opportunity again.

As soon as we got off the plane in Osaka one of the other students in my group noticed a Universal Studios poster and mentioned that it would be fun to go. Then I slid in there like thots in Drake’s DM with my suggestion.

“Oh my gosh guys, I just thought about it. There is a Disneyland in Tokyo! We should go there on our day off when we get to Tokyo." Everyone seemed thrilled....Step 1: Arouse interest. Check 😎.

A couple weeks later, when we got to Tokyo we passed an adorable Disney Store in the Shibuya district. I noticed that you could purchase park tickets at this location, so I made the suggestion that we buy our tickets there, and we did. Step 2: Get it in the bag. Check 😎.

Then a few days later, we made it to Disney and I almost cried the second we walked in. I had to hold it together to not embarrass myself and look like a weirdo, but this was the first time I had stepped into my happy place in 8 years! It was fantastic. When I got back to the states all I could think about was Disney and how much I wanted to get back there. I was determined that I would spend my summer figuring out how to get back to Disney.

At the time I was working a minimum wage job at Urban Outfitters, so I had nothing to lose by applying to be a cast member. I began researching what was needed to be a CM, and that was when it hit me in the face. That thing. The thing I started so long ago, but tucked away never to think about again. THE DISNEY COLLEGE PROGRAM. I looked up the requirements and sure enough I was eligible. And that was my Disney reawakening…

Fast forward to 2018, after having completed 2 consecutive college programs, and being a proud annual pass holder, here I am. Before I started this journey, I’ll admit I was a little ashamed. I was an adult obsessed with Walt Disney World, and I had NO IDEA that there were millions of people just like me.

After meeting all the wonderful participants on my program, I realized that I had nothing to be ashamed of and I started I sharing my Disney experiences with all the people I knew. I even noticed that a lot more people were heading to Disney, that I never thought would be interested, which I love!

 I chose Disney because of the way it makes me feel. Not only do I love to go to Disney and talk about it myself, but I absolutely love to see others on Disney vacations. I enjoy giving them my advice and spreading my enthusiasm. I hope the magic and splendor of my page inspires as many people I can to experience the Disney Magic that warmed my heart at such a young age. I want them to know the place that instantly made me fall in love.

So there you have it, I’m so happy to share my story with you, and I would love to hear yours.

 Thanks for reading ❤